Bathinda, September 29 – Kangana Ranaut, BJP MP and actor, failed to appear in a Bathinda court on Monday in connection with a defamation case filed by elderly farmer Mahinder Kaur. The case relates to remarks Ranaut made during the farmers’ protest, referring to Kaur as the “Shaheen Bagh grandmother” and alleging that women were being paid to attend protests.
Ranaut’s lawyer had requested that she appear via video conferencing, but the court denied the plea. Summons had been issued to Ranaut earlier on September 29, which she did not comply with.
“Summons were issued to Kangana earlier, but they were not accepted. Subsequent summons were issued through the SSP, and the court directed her to appear soon,” said Mahinder Kaur’s lawyer, Raghubir Singh Bahniwal.
Due to her absence, the court has postponed the matter to October 27. Ranaut had earlier petitioned the Punjab and Haryana High Court to dismiss the case, and later approached the Supreme Court, but both pleas were rejected. She is now required to appear in person in the Bathinda court on the next scheduled date.
